Hunted
by Spiderwiz
Summary: Legolas is a young wood elf- the equivalent of a 15 year old human- and goes to visit Rivendell. What happens when he, Elladan, and Elrohir get taken captive by orcs while on a hunting trip? (Rated T just to be safe)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys! So in one of my other fanfics I decided to give Legolas siblings, but SCREW THAt because I like him as an only child. This fanfic also goes along with the idea that Leggy has been friends with Elladan and Elrohir ever since he was a young elfling.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

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Chapter 1

Legolas didn't want his guards to travel with him to Rivendell, but his father insisted. He said that the journey would be dangerous and Legolas was too young and blah blah blah. Thranduil didn't understand that he could handle himself. Sure, he was only the human equivalent of a 15 year old, but he was the best archer of anyone else his age. If any orcs came, Legolas was sure they wouldn't stand a chance against him! But no. Thranduil wouldn't listen.

The journey to Rivendell had so far been pretty uneventful. No orcs or anything. Legolas was just glad when he could finally make Rivendell out in the distance. He couldn't wait to see Elladan and Elrohir! It had been over a few years since he'd last seen them, which wasn't long at all for an elf, but it still felt like forever. He knew they would tease him for having to bring guards along with him though.. Oh well.

Legolas continued riding his mare into Rivendell, until they approached the stables. He was glad they finally arrived, for it was nearing sunset. He dismounted his horse, then walked up to where Lord Elrond and his sons were as several servants led his mare away.

"Greeting penneth," Elrond said with a smile.

"Legolas!" twin brothers, Elladan and Elrohir greeted at the same time. They were older than Legolas, but were some of his closest friends. They would be around the equivalent of 20 human years.

"How was your journey?" Elrohir asked.

Legolas shrugged. "Boring. Uneventful."

"You should be glad it was uneventful," Elrond said. "There have been many orcs in these parts lately."

"I guess I'm lucky then. You are right. An uneventful journey is better than a dangerous one."

Elrond smiled. "Pushing that matter aside, you should go in and refresh yourself. I'm sure it was a tiresome trip."

Legolas nodded and went to where his chambers were. There was a guest room specifically for him since he stayed so often. The young elf quickly bathed then sighed as he looked out of his window, now wearing a light green tunic with matching leggings, other than his travel worn clothes. It was always nice to be in Rivendell. He loved the feeling of utter peace the place gave. He loved Mirkwood, but for as long as he could remember, it had been much darker and dangerous than Rivendell. He heard stories of when it was in its former glory. He just wished it was that way now..

And then of course, there were Elladan, Elrohir, and Lord Elrond. The twins were like brothers to him, and Elrond, a second father. He always felt at home with them.

"Legolas? Are you ready? It's dinner time, though Adar said we can bring you up some food if you're too exhausted to go down there," the young prince heard Elladan call out from the hallway.

Legolas turned towards the door and walked over to it before opening it up. "No. I am a bit tired but I've been waiting so long to see you all. Let's go down then, shall we?"

Elladan grinned as he and Legolas walked down to the dining hall. Once they arrived, Legolas saw Elrond and Elrohir waiting. Elrohir seemed impatient. "There you are! What took you so long? We sent Elladan to get you 15 minutes ago!"

Legolas shrugged and glanced at Elladan. "Don't look at me."

Elladan gave a sheepish smile. "I may have gotten a little sidetracked.."

"Doing what?" Elrohir demanded.

Elrond waved his hand. "It does not matter. Sit, let's dine."

Legolas took a seat across from Elrohir, and Elladan sat down next to the prince.

"So what are we going to do during my stay here?" Legolas asked the twins as he piled some food on his plate.

Elladan and Elrohir grinned. "We were planning on taking a hunting trip. It'll be fun now that you're old enough to go on a *real* one."

Legolas had been hunting with the twins before, but they had only been day trips. The thought of going on an overnight one excited him. He grinned.

"Really?" he asked. "When do we leave?"

"Depends," Elrohir said after he swallowed a bite of food. "We could go as early as tomorrow, but we figured you'd want some rest."

Legolas took a sip of water then shrugged. "No, I don't need any rest. The trip here was boring. I'd like some real fun."

"Tomorrow it is then," Elladan said with his mouth full of food, so it sounded more like 'toof-marf his fen.' Legolas smirked slightly. Elrohir whacked his twin.

"Don't talk with your mouth full you twit."

Elladan glared at Elrohir but before he could retort, Lord Elrond interrupted.

"I'm not so sure it's such a good idea for you three to go hunting. Don't forget that orcs have been spotted just outside of Rivendell. You know the trouble they bring, and you'd have this young one with you," he said, gesturing to Legolas, who frowned.

"But I-" the prince started before Elladan spoke up.

"Ada, we've seen Legolas fight. He may be young, but he's an excellent fighter and archer. He can defend himself! And besides, Elrohir and I would be there to protect him!"

Elrohir nodded. "We wouldn't let any of those nasty orcs lay a finger on him. We won't even go anywhere near them! Please?"

Elrond sighed, giving it some thought. All three of the younger elves waited closely for his reply.

"Very well.." he said after a moment. The twins pumped their arms in the air for the victory. Legolas grinned widely.

"On one condition though," Elrond continued. "I don't want any of you coming back here harmed in any way, am I understood? The moment you sense danger, turn back."

They all nodded. "Hannon le Ada," Elladan said, grinning. He, Elrohir, and Legolas continued chatting excitedly about the hunting trip as they finished their dinner. Legolas couldn't wait. His first real hunting trip! It would be so much fun. He wondered what they would catch; deer, rabbit..

He just hoped they wouldn't run into any orcs…

* * *

 **Tbc…**

 **A/N: Well, first chapter done! Sorry if it's kinda short. This was more of a prologue really.. The next chapters will be longer.**

 **Anyway, tell me what you think so far in the comments! Also, any ideas are very much appreciated!**


	2. Watched

**A/N: I just want to thank everyone who reviewed the first chapter! Your comments mean a lot! Hope you enjoy this second chapter as much as you enjoyed the first :)**

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Chapter 2

Legolas woke up at the crack of dawn like he did every morning. He glanced out of his window as he got dressed in his traveling clothes. Good, the weather seemed perfect for a hunting trip. Ah, Rivendell.. Mornings were so beautiful here.

The young prince knelt on the ground next to his pack and made sure he had everything he would need for the trip. Bow and arrows.. Extra arrows. Even more extra arrows, his knives, extra lembas.. As he finished going through everything and deemed it ready to go, he headed down to the dining hall for breakfast.

It was late morning when Legolas and the twins were finally ready to leave. They bid Elrond goodbye, and after assuring him they would all return in one piece, left. Elrond still felt uneasy as they walked into the forest though, even after their assurances. He had no doubt that if something went wrong, the twins would protect Legolas, but what if they got injured- or worse- in the process?

Elrond sighed as he turned around and walked back inside. They would be fine. They were all great warriors, even young Legolas. Growing up in the darkness of Mirkwood had done that to him…

If he was so sure they would be fine, then why did a horrible feeling tug at him?

"My Lord, are you alright?" Elrond's faithful adviser and friend- Saeldir - asked.

The Lord of Imladris shook his head and started pacing. "My dear Saeldir, I have a bad feeling about them leaving, though they will only be gone for one day.."

Saeldir looked at the forest in front of them. "Perhaps your feeling is correct.. Would you like for me to call them back?"

Elrond pondered on this. Calling them back would ease his worries, but they had been looking so forward to this trip. And besides, what if that's all these feelings were - worry. T made sense to be worried when orcs were spotted not too far away. But then again, he had the gift of foresight.. What if this was more than just worry?

"No," the elven lord said at last. "Let them be." He just hoped and prayed to the Valor that they would be safe.

* * *

Legolas was looking around excitedly as he and the twins walked deeper into the forest, where they would hopefully find more game. Legolas' bow was slung over his shoulder, along with his quiver full of arrows, and his pack.

"It's strange," Elrohir said as they continued to walk. "The forest isn't usually so.. quiet.."

He was right. Not even the call of a bird could be heard. They hadn't even spotted a rabbit, which Legolas was sure they should have by now. It was strange in deed…

Elladan shook his head. "I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure we will run into something soon. If we're lucky, maybe even a white tailed deer."

Legolas nodded, keeping his eye out for any sign of wildlife. The young prince wasn't sure why, but he had a bad feeling..He just couldn't place what it was about..

Elrohir glanced at Legolas, seeming to notice his slightly troubled expression.

"What is it mellon-nin? Is something wrong?" the eldest twin asked.

Legolas was silent for a moment, just looking ahead, before turning to Elladan with a slightly surprised expression.

"What? No. Why would something be wrong?"

The prince didn't want to worry the twins over what could be a misplaced concern. Besides...His bad feeling was probably because of what Elrond said about the orcs. Which, of course, they were going to avoid at all costs. None of the three young elves wanted to make Elrond angry by coming home in several pieces… It had happened many times before and wasn't a pretty or friendly sight…

Elladan narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Legolas seemed almost too innocent as he said that. He always did when he was hiding something. But if Legolas didn't want to say what it was, he wasn't going to force him. It probably wasn't anything important anyways.

Legolas noticed Elladan's suspicion expression, and forced himself to look even more innocent, this time, trying hard not to laugh. It was obvious Elladan didn't believe him, which just made this slightly amusing to the prince.

"Can I help you?" he asked Elladan as the twin continued to look suspicious.

Elladan smirked slightly. "Nope, not at all. Thank you very kindly though, *your highness*."

The tone he said 'your highness in' made it very obvious that he was mocking Legolas, and the prince just rolled his eyes to that comment, though a slight smile appeared on his face.

"Very well then," he replied back in a joking manner.

* * *

It wasn't till hour later that the twins both stopped and runes around, so that they were looking at Legolas and each other. Still, nothing in sight. It was almost as if something had scared all the wildlife away.

"Has anyone seen *anything* at all?" Elladan asked in a tired tone of voice. "I really expected this hunting expedition to be more...eventful…"

Elrohir and Legolas both shook their heads. "Nothing," Elrohir said. "It's eerie if you ask me...Unnatural."

The twins looked at each other as if having a silent conversation between themselves. Legolas watched impatiently, trying to understand what was going on. Weird how the twins could do that.

"What?" the impatient young elf asked after a few seconds of this.

Elrohir patted Legolas on the shoulder. "Nothing, mellon. Let us keep walking."

The younger twin shot a slightly worried look at his brother. They had a suspicion of what was causing this silence, but they didn't want to tell Legolas. Not yet anyways, not until they had proof. There was no need to cause pointless worry after all…

Legolas raised an eyebrow-he might have been young, but he wasn't stupid- he knew they were hiding something. He chose not to say anything though.

"Legolas?" Elrohir said, making the prince realize he didn't start walking again with the twins. He gave a slight grin and pushed his thoughts away. "Sorry, coming."

There was a silence between the three of them before Legolas glanced back at the twins.

"So you've both been hunting many times before?" he asked, interested. He bet they have.

Elladan nodded and grinned wickedly at Elrohir. "Oh yes. And all the stories we have to tell."

Elrohir shook his head in an exasperated way and looked at Legolas. "Don't ask him. He'll only go on and on and on…"

Elladan laughed. "Right. You just don't want me to tell him about that one time you got your foot caught in an animal trap. Silly excuse for an elf. You should have paid more attention to your surroundings."

Legolas grinned at that. "You really did?" He asked the younger twin, who nodded gravely.

"Sadly, yes. Elladan here *promised* he wouldn't tell but he can never keep a secret, can he."

Elladan smirked. "When we got back to Rivendell 'ro got an hour long lecture from Adar."

Elrohir shot a murderous look at his twin. "Dear brother, shall I tell Legolas about the time that you-"

Elladan's face suddenly went very red. "NO! You promised! Not even Adar knows! Please, I beg you!"

Elrohir and Legolas both laughed.

"Well you didn't keep your promise, so I guess I don't have to keep mine either. It was about a few decades ago. We took a friend of ours with us and…"

Legolas smiled as he listened to the story. The twins never ran out of good ones to tell.

* * *

A large pack of orcs just so happened to be near where the three young elves were traveling. So far, neither were aware of the other's presence. Then, who appeared to be the leader of the orcs wrinkled his nose.

"I smell some nasty elves," he said. The others all murmured and nodded in agreement. Ah elves..They had run into some not too long ago, but they never got tired of the taste of their blood.

Another orc-probably a scout- ran up to the leader. "They're not too far ahead us."

The leader nodded with a wicked and ugly grin on his face. "Yes. Good. We'll try our best to catch them by surprise. Then we can feast on elves for dinner."

* * *

After a little while, Legolas was beginning to get the feeling that someone or something was watching them. He kept glancing behind him to see if anything was, but he didn't see anything. Still.. He just.. Sensed that something was there…

Elladan raised an eyebrow as he noticed the young prince's behavior.

"Legolas, that's the 100th time you've glanced behind you. What are you doing exactly?"

This time, the elf king believed that he shou tell them, in case they really were being watched and followed. He looked at the twins.

"I..I don't know.. I have the feeling we're being watched.."

Both the twins pursed their lips together in a thin line. "I do too. And I believe Elrohir does also. Perhaps we should check?" Elladan said.

Elrohir nodded and gave another look at his brother. "Aye. Perhaps we should."

Legolas looked between the two. "What is it?" he asked. "Do you think it's the orcs your father warned us about?"

Elrohir sighed. "I fear so. We should have checked sooner, but we didn't want to spoil the trip."

Legolas unconsciously let one hand drift to his bow. If they were orcs, he hoped they would have the upper hand and surprise them. But he had a sense they wouldn't be so lucky..

The young prince had only faced an orc once before. It was during one of his first patrols in Mirkwood. He was accompanied by more than a few guards, because Thranduil insisted that he was accident prone and needed the extra protection. He wasn't wrong, but it still annoyed the prince. Long story short, the patrol ran into a small pack of orcs. Legolas didn't get the chance to kill any because of his many guards (he later complained this fact to his father) but he still saw them. He hoped he would never have to again. While he was used to the giant spiders of Mirkwood, orcs were still strangers to him. He didn't know how hard they were to kill, how dangerous they were..Nothing.

The young elf shook himself out of his memories. "What do we do then?" he asked the twins.

"Wait," Elladan replied. "Stay here with Elrohir while I go and check to see if we're being followed. If you heard two hoots of an owl, run."

Legolas frowned. "And let you get killed? I don't think so. I might not be as old as you two but I can handle myself."

Elladan raised an eyebrow. "We came here to hunt for game, not fight orcs. And both of our fathers would have my head if I let you get hurt."

He turned to Elrohir. "Keep a close eye on him, won't you? If there's no trouble I should be back in a few minutes."

Elrohir nodded and watched as Elladan disappeared beyond the trees.

Legolas hoped that it truly was nothing. He wouldn't want to fight a pack of orcs if he had anything to do about it. He was starting to have second thoughts about this hunting trip, which were too late really, as they were already on it. Perhaps Lord Elrond had been correct in saying they should have stayed back in Rivendell. But then again, it was only an overnight trip. How much trouble could they possibly get in?

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 **Tbc...**

 **A/N: Aw, kinda a cliffy! What do you guys think'll happen when they finally run into the orcs?**

 **Please leave a review!**


	3. Orcs!

**A/N: You guys are the best, seriously! Everyone seems to love this story so far, and you have no idea how happy that makes me :)**

 **Also, I have a camp this week starting Wednesday, then I'm taking a trip up to Oregon to visit family until August 4th, so I won't be able to update for a little while. But fear not! As soon as I get back, I will try to update!**

 **Anyway, enjoy the third chapter of** _ **Hunted**_ **!**

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Chapter 3

Elladan stepped silently and carefully, making sure that he wouldn't be seen or heard. 'Please don't let it be orcs..Anything but orcs..' he thought to himself. Ever since the twins' mother had returned to Rivendell, tortured by the orcs and having lost all her hope, Elrond's family had a burning passion of hate for the vile creatures. Elladan could never forget the empty look that was in his mother's eyes… She didn't sailed too long after that. For years and years after, centuries really, Elladan and Elrohir killed every orc they could get their hands on..

Hmm.. Elladan was starting to think running into orcs wouldn't be such a bad thing. It would make him feel a tad bit better to kill some of the creatures..

He shook his head. Legolas was with them. Only bad things would happen if there were orcs, he could feel it. The young prince was more than a little accident prone…

As Elladan continued to retrace their steps, he noticed that the trees were almost...whispering warnings. He thought it Strange. Trees had a much stronger connection with wood elves, and didn't usually 'speak' to others, but then again, it wasn't unheard of. What he didn't like though, is how they kept warning him of danger.

Elladan supposed he should have heeded the trees' warnings to go back, but he didn't.

Suddenly, he heard it. He should have heard it much earlier, but hadn't been paying much attention, disgraced in his thoughts. The obvious, harsh voices of the orcs.

Elladan muttered a dwarvish curse. That was all he needed to hear. And by the sound of it, they were closer than he originally thought.

The elf didn't waste a second more, and turned, and ran back to where he left Elrohir and Legolas to wait.

Legolas and Elrohir had been waiting patiently, but with worry. When they saw Elladan come back, with his face pale and a murderous expression on his face, they already knew the answer.

"Orcs," Elladan said.

As soon as Elladan said that, Legolas and Elrohir both reached for their bows.

"How far behind are they?" Elrohir asked.

"Not far," Elladan replied. "They'll catch up with us soon. We won't be able to escape them. We'll have to fight."

Legolas was again torn between the feelings of excitement and nervousness at this statement. On one hand, he'd never fought an orc before! On the other hand.. He'd never fought an orc before…. No matter what though, the young elf wasn't going to give up in the fight easily. He was ready-or so he thought.

Legolas looked up to Elladan. "Are you going to try to catch them by surprise then? We can hide in the trees maybe…"

Elrohir nodded. "Yes. We definitely want to catch them by surprise. It won't do us any good waiting here for them. And I like the tree idea as well."

Legolas grinned slightly. "Let's get going then, shall we? I can hardly wait to kill my first orc."

Elladan sighed. "Don't get too excited Legolas. Orcs are creatures to be messed with. While they are stupid beings, they are dangerous. And try not to get injured, will you? They often line their weapons with poison."

The young prince nodded. "Okay. Got it. No getting injured. Shouldn't be too hard."

Elrohir rolled his eyes and grinned. "Says the prince who constantly gets himself into trouble. I've never went a week without seeing you injure yourself somehow."

Elladan grinned too. "Even this morning I remember you stumbling down the stairs. Pretty sorry excuse for an elf if you ask me."

Legolas mock pouted. "I tripped over your sword that you left lying around. That's a safety hazard you know."

The twins both laughed. "Everything is a safety hazard for you," the younger twin retorted. "Now anyways, weren't we going to go attack some orcs?"

Elladan frowned slightly. "Aye, we were. Best not to keep them waiting."'

He started off in the direction the orcs were, and Elrohir and Legolas closely followed. As they walked, Elladan explained the plan to them.

"So as our favorite wood elf said, we will hide in the trees until they pass by in our direction, which shouldn't be long. Then, if we're lucky, we can shoot them all down from the trees. Do both of you have a full quiver of arrows?"

Elrohir raised an eyebrow. "Well yes. I mean, there hasn't been any game here to use them on, so.."

Elladan whacked his twin in the head, as Elrohir shot a glare that could kill at his brother. Legolas shook his head. "You two. Do you ever stop arguing?"

Elladan opened his mouth, looking as if he was about to retort something that he would never repeat within a 50 ft distance of Lord Elrond, when Elrohir shushed the two of them. "The orcs are near. Be quiet. Time to take our plan to action."

"My plan," Elladan whispered.

Legolas frowned. "Hey! I was the one that came up with the idea to-"

Elrohir glared at the prince. "Shh! Do you want them to hear us?"

"I doubt the oafs couldn't hear us if we were standing right next to them," Elladan muttered. "Do you hear the racket they're making?"

Elrohir looked up at the sky, as if saying to the valor 'why me?' Sometimes he felt he was the only sensible one of this lot, and that was saying a lot. He often had to restrain himself from Strange lung Elladan or Legolas, for he knew it would be hard to explain to Elrond and Thranduil why their sons were suddenly dead...

* * *

The three of them climbed into a tree and held their bows ready, an arrow resting ready in each. They observed the trail at the bottom of the forest, waiting for the orcs to emerge, and the opportune moment to strike. They didn't want to give away their positions too early after all.

"As soon as I give the signal, shoot away," Elladan said.

"Why *your* signal? Why not mine?" Elrohir replied hastily.

Elladan rolled his eyes. "Because you'll say it too early or too late, we all know that."

Elrohir narrowed his eyes. "What are you implying dear brother?"

Elladan ignored his brother's question, as he looked down and saw the first of the orcs come into view. Once they were all in the perfect position for the elves to hit, Elladan whispered "Now."

In faster than the blink of an eye, three arrows each took down an orc. Legolas was pleased to see that his arrow hit precisely where the orc's heart was. And right after that, more arrows rained upon the orcs.

By now, the orcs all looked up in confusion. Then the one who Legolas thought to be the leader looked up into the trees angrily. "Elves!" he yelled. "It's some drafted elves! Get them you fools!" He knew they would run into the elves eventually. He just wasn't expecting them to attack first. In his plan, they were going to surprise the elves first. But oh well. They were here now.

The before silent forest was now filled with many shouts. An orc arrow, though shot shabbily, grazed Legolas' arm, and the young elf let out a curse. He should have been paying more attention. He winced slightly though. The graze was bleeding, and though not much at all, it still stung.

"Legolas, watch out!" Elrohir yelled as another arrow headed straight for the prince's head. Legolas ducked just in time.

"Thanks," he replied back to Elrohir, glad that he didn't currently have an arrow coming from his head. He glanced over to the twins, just to check how they were doing. Elladan shot an arrow that got knocked out of the air by an orc arrow. Elrohir appeared to be doing well, but he was running out of arrows. It wouldn't be much longer till they would be forced to fight on the ground. Legolas bit his lip at that thought. The orcs were all physically much bigger than him, and though elven strength was great, he was still very young, and the orcs were no doubtfully stronger than him as well. It would not be a fairly matched fight, that was for sure. Then again, Legolas was much quicker than these slow beings. Perhaps that would aid him…

"Legolas! For crying out loud, turn around and focus on the orcs!" Elladan yelled at the prince, in fear that he would get hit. Young ones these days always seemed to get distracted easily, and that wasn't good in the face of battle. "Do you want to get yourself killed?"

Legolas turned slightly red but turned around, focusing on the orcs once more. Elladan was right. How stupid could he be? He could have gotten shot in that short amount of time he spent observing the twins to make sure they were alright.

The elfling shot several more arrows, before he reached to his quiver and realized they were all gone. A panicked expression came to his face. What did he do now? Sure, he was trained very well to fight with his knives, but still.. He was most comfortable using his bow, and he couldn't in close range like that.

"I'm out of arrows," he called to the twins, unsure of what he was supposed to do.

Elrohir let out a dwarvish curse. "Legolas stay in the tree. Don't go to the ground. Elladan and I will handle the rest of this."

Before Legolas could reply, insisting that he wouldn't just stay here and wait while they risked their lives, an arrow hit him in the shoulder, causing the elf to gasp out in pain. From the position he was in, and the amount of force that the arrow hit him with, he fell out of the tree, Elladan and Elrohir screaming his name. It was a shame really, that the prince had been perched in a rather tall tree…

Legolas couldn't concentrate on anything but the pain as he fell, and when he landed- or rather crashed- to the ground, a moan escaped his lips. Everything hurt. It felt as though every bone in his body had broken. Black spots appeared in his vision. Legolas tried to sit up, but his body wouldn't comply. He hardly even noticed when Elrohir appeared at his side, looking terrified. That was the last thing he saw though, before the darkness took over and he blacked out.

The twins were both horrified when they saw Legolas get hit with that orc arrow and fall out of the tree. Both their eyes widened when they heard Legolas hit the ground with a bone sickening *crunch*. Elladan wanted to murder the young elf for not paying better attention, but he faulted himself instead. He had distracted Legolas. If he had t, the prince would still be safe in the tree. A part of Elladan knew that he was just being ridiculous, and knew that it wasn't his fault, but he didn't care. All he could focus on was the very still elven body laying on the ground, looking like a broken doll.

He and Elrohir immediately yet gracefully climbed down from their trees. As much as he wanted to though, he knew they couldn't both attend to Legolas. He frantically turned to his twin.

"Elrohir! Make sure Legolas is alright, won't you? I've got you covered."

Elrohir was too nervous about Legolas to argue, so he gulped, nodded, and rushed over to the elfling's side. As he knelt by his side, his face paled as he noticed Legolas' condition. The young prince was practically laying in a pool of blood. He couldn't tell if it was just from the arrow wound or not, but knew that this amount of blood loss was bad.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw the arrow wound. The arrow had pierced Legolas from the front, but when he crashed, he landed on his front, so the arrow had been pushed through his whole shoulder. This was not good. The only bright side to this was that it didn't appear to pierce anything vital, though it was a lot closer to the prince's heart than he would have liked.

The second thing that worried Elrohir was that Legolas was unconscious, and very, very pale. "Legolas? Legolas, can you hear me?" he said, practically begging for the younger elf to wake up. Oh elbereth, his father and King Thranduil were both going to have his head for letting this happen to the prince… He just hoped he wouldn't have to go home bearing the news of his death.

Elrohir let out a frustrated sigh when Legolas didn't reply. It looked as though he had hit his head when falling. Hopefully he didn't have a concussion… And especially not a bad one at that. The arrow wound was bad enough."

Upon further examination, Elrohir noticed the odd angle that Legolas' right arm was currently bent it. Not good.. Not good at all.. It was most definitely broken. 'Great,' the younger twin thought to himself. 'His left shoulder has an arrow sticking through it, and his right arm is broken. Perfect. Just perfect.'

He was trying not to panic now. Legolas was seriously hurt, and when he glanced up, he could tell that Elladan was losing against the orcs, there were just too many of them, and only one of Elladan. The older twin's arm had a long gash in it, but luckily appeared otherwise unharmed. Elrohir still didn't like their odds.

Elrohir quickly turned back to Legolas. He let out a breath as he let his healer's instincts come in, remembering everything his father taught him. One: it was important to keep calm when treating your patient, no matter how bad the injury was, or who it was you're treating. Sure, he was scared out of his mind for the other elf, but with the breath he took, he let all of that nervousness vanish.

Two: If there's a wound that's bleeding a lot, close it up before the patient gets any worse from blood loss. The arrow wound. Though the arrow was still lodged in Legolas' shoulder, it was still bleeding quite a lot. Elrohir frowned and leaned in closer. It shouldn't be bleeding that freely. He ran a hand through his hair. "Poison. Of course.." he muttered. Orcs often used a poison that made the blood flow way more. That way, their victims could just bleed to death…

Elrohir went through his bag beside him and quickly got out his healers supplies. He would worry about the poison later. Right now, he really had to get that arrow out and stitch the wound up.

Whispering his apologies to Legolas, he placed his hands carefully on the arrow, hating what he knew he had to do. He yanked the arrow and pulled it out, glad the tip wasn't barbed. He winced as Legolas, though unconscious, lurched up in pain. More blood came out, if possible. Legolas was growing dangerously pale now, and his lips were tinged slightly blue. Elrohir quickly stitched up the wound as fast as he could. The stitches weren't as even as he would have liked, but it stopped the blood flow, and for that he was grateful.

Three: Check for signs of shock, and stop it if possible. Legolas' lips were blue and he was deathly pale. Neither was a good sign. It was probably more from blood loss than actual shock, but Elrohir worried nonetheless, and immediately started treating Legolas the best he could for any shock.

Once all that was done, Elrohir focused on Legolas' arm. It was bad, but it wasn't as bad as he originally thought. The bone didn't pierce the skin, so that was good. He would just have to set it.

Elrohir grabbed some bandages from his pack and first bandaged the arrow wound, then went on to the prince's arm. He wasn't excited to set it, knowing it would cause Legolas a great amount of pain, but he knew it had to be done for the arm to heal. Before he got the chance to set it though, he had to duck to avoid an orc decapitating him.

"Watch out!" he heard Elladan yell to him as another orc attempted to stab the younger twin. Elrohir moved just in time, and again looked up, realizing just how bad their current situation was. He had been so focused on Legolas that he forgot that Elladan was fighting the orcs all alone, and he was injured too. Along with the gash on his arm, the elder twin also had an arrow sticking out of his leg that had to hurt. Elrohir noticed how he was gritting his teeth as he fought. This was a large group of orcs too. His injuries were slowing Elladan down, and the orcs nearly had him.

Elrohir glanced at Legolas. He still needed his help. But then again, he wouldn't need any help if they all ended up dead..

The younger twin took a deep breath before standing up and pulling out his sword. If they were going to go down, he was going to take some orcs with him. They were the reason his mother sailed, and now they were the reason that Legolas laid half dead on the ground. They were going to pay for that…

* * *

 **Tbc…**

 **A/N: The sad truth is that this is the longest chapter I've ever written of anything. But I do feel accomplished so that's great! Anyway, how'd you like this chapter? Please leave a review!**


	4. Captured

**A/N: Sorry guys! It's been like three months since I last updated! Anyway, enjoy this next chapter!**

They were losing. That much was very clear to Elrohir as he attacked an orc. Elladan's strength was nearly gone because of his wounds, and Elrohir now had a gash in his leg from one of the blasted orc's swords. At this rate, it would take a miracle for them to beat the orcs.

As Elrohir fought, he couldn't help but worry for Legolas. He tried to focus, reminding himself that he would worry about the younger elf after all of this, but then his mind drifted to the image of the prince lying there on the ground, half dead.

It seemed as though the battle was lasting hours, but it was only minutes. Before Elrohir fully realized what was happening, he watched as an orc swung a club at Elladan's head, knocking him out.

Next thing he knew, several orcs came behind him and pushed him to the ground, before knocking him on the head too. Elrohir barely had the chance to think 'uh oh' before everything turned black.

Elrohir woke up hearing several voices. The tongue sounded familiar, but his head was too fuzzy to place what it was. He struggled to open his eyes, but once he did, his vision was slightly blurry, and he realised that his head was pounding like crazy. He also felt slightly ill, which was not a familiar feeling to him. "Great," Elrohir murmured. "Just great. I have a concussion, don't I?"

Though he said that, his thoughts were mostly coherent, so he supposed that if he really did have a concussion, it wasn't a bad one.

Elrohir glanced beside him, wincing slightly when the motion made his head pound. He saw that Elladan and Legolas were also tied up, though they were unconscious still. His eyes suddenly widened. Legolas! Last he checked, the young elf who he considered a brother was half dead. He grimaced as he noticed the prince's arm was still bent at a strange angle. If it wasn't set soon, it would heal like that and they would have to break it again to fix it. That...would not be fun for anyone.

Just like the last he'd seen of him, Legolas was still deathly pale, and there were beads of sweat on his forehead. His eyes were scrunched up in pain, and Elrohir nearly cursed when he realized that the skin around Legolas' shoulder wound looked angry and inflamed. That was not good. If Elrohir's concussed memory served right, the wound was infected.

Elrohir tried to shove the worry that was gnawing at him away, and decided to instead focus on their situation. Squinting his eyes and ignoring the blurriness caused by his head wound, he was just barely able to make out the faint shape of several orcs. It was then that their current predicament came back to him.

Orcs. They were attacked by orcs and apparently captured too. On the bright side though, Elladan looked perfectly fine and healthy compared to Legolas. The fewer of them injured, the better. If they were to make it back home alive, the twins would both need to be able to support Legolas.

Looking at his twin, Elrohir bit his lip and nudged him gently. "Wake up. C'mon 'Dan, wake up."

With a soft groan, the older twin's eyes fluttered open. He furrowed his eyebrows, looking confused. "...'Ro? What are.. What… What's going on?"

Elrohir glanced nervously back at the orcs. "Remember the battle? Orcs found us and captured us. And now, Legolas is gravely injured. I fear for him Elladan…"

A now very worried Elladan turned to look at the said elf. "Oh Valar help us… This doesn't look good at all… I should have paid more attention… I promised Adar I would keep him safe! But it is very apparently he is not."

Were he not tied up, Elladan would have buried his face in his hands. Elrohir noticed his brother's woe and shook his head, ignoring the pounding it caused. "It's not your fault. You promised Adar that we both would keep Legolas safe. And there wasn't any way we could have known the orcs were coming."

"Thad not true…" Elladan said. "We could have-"

"-But we didn't. What's done is done. Right now we need to worry about escaping so we can get him some help. Placing blame on ourselves will get us nowhere."

Elladan sighed and glanced down. "You're right. Sorry.." he looked at the orcs. "So what's our plan?"

Elrohir frowned slightly. "I'm not sure. The orcs far outnumber us, and in this condition, we won't be able to fight them off." He paused. "I'll think of something though… I have to, for Legolas' sake…"

Elladan was silent, and watched as the sun started setting. He frowned too. The orcs would surely come check up on their prisoners soon, but what then? Would they torture them? Kill them? Whatever it was, it wouldn't be good, he knew that for sure.

 **A/N: Sorry for the short chapter, but I just really wanted to update. Anyway, please leave a review!**


	5. Escape Plan

**A/N: Oh my heck, I'm super bad about updating. I give you my sincerest apologies. Please don't hate me! Lol, anyway, I hope you enjoy this next chapter! I hope the wait was worth it for you...**

* * *

Legolas groaned as he struggled to open his eyes. Everything...Everything hurt. A lot.

"Legolas? Legolas can you hear me?"

He heard muffled sounding voices calling out his name. He continued to try to open his eyes, but at this point, he wasn't sure he wanted to. A part of him wanted to just succumb to the darkness. It seemed so much easier than to endure this pain…

"Legolas!"

The voice was quiet but pleading.

"Come on...Legolas, open your eyes…"

His eyes flew open at the same time he gave a pained groan. Everything was very blurry, but he thought he could make out the faces of Elladan and Elrohir looking down at him. His vision was too blurry to make out their expressions, but they sounded worried.

"El...El...dan?" Legolas muttered quietly. His head was pounding so badly. He wouldn't have been surprised if a knife was stuck through it. And he could hardly form a coherent thought. "O-orcs…"

The twins shot concerned glances at each other. "Yes mellon-nin, there are orcs. They captured us and hurt you. Do you remember?" one of them spoke to him. He couldn't tell. It was even harder than usual to tell them apart when his head was killing him and his vision was blurry.

"Hurts," he said, not liking how it came out as a whimper.

"Yes, I know," the soft and gentle voice of one of the twins came. "We'll try to help you the best that we can."

Upon hearing that, Legolas attempted to stand, but then found that he was bound. A hiss of pain escaped his lips when sharp pangs of pain came from both his shoulder and his arm. Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead as he quit struggling and leaned back against the tree the three of them were tied to.

The only thing entering his mind that he could focus on was how they were going to get out of this mess. Before he could think on it any further though, his eyes closed and he passed out once again.

* * *

"Why do these vile creatures have to keep hurting those we care about?" Elrohir said quietly and sadly to his brother. "First our mother and now Legolas…Why Elladan?"

All Elladan could do was sigh. "I don't know 'Ro, I don't know…" They should have listened to Elrond when he warned them about the orcs in the first place. It was foolish of them. Why did they-why did _he_ risk everyone's safety like this?

Elladan forced himself to take a deep breath. It would be fine. Everything would be fine. Sooner rather than later, Elrond would realise they weren't back yet and would send search parties out for them. And that was only if they didn't manage to escape first.

"Help me think. We need an escape plan." He made sure to speak very quietly, in under even a whisper.

"Hmm…" Elrohir was silent for a moment. "Well, it will be dark out soon. Orcs aren't very smart; there's a chance we won't even be guarded. If that's the case, then we can find something sharp… A rock maybe, and cut ourselves free. If we step lightly enough, they won't notice our escape till morning."

Elladan raised an eyebrow in a critical fashion. "But what if they do decide to guard us?"

"We just have to hope they won't. And they probably think we're defenseless right now in our condition. In their minds, guarding us would be futile."

"Even if that's the case, no mere rock will set us free. Admit it, this plan of yours will just waste our time."

Elrohir glared at his twin-not necessarily mad at him, but the hard situation they were thrown into. He didn't answer for a minute, but then his eyes suddenly widened and a grin broke out on his face. "My extra knife! It's still hidden in my boot, we can use that!" Thank the Valar that orcs were so dim-witted as to not think to check for any extra weapons.

Elladan's face lit up as well. "Yes! Though… Reaching it may prove to be difficult with us tied up like this." Indeed, the ropes were very tight. "And we want to make sure we aren't caught doing it." He glanced up at the sky. "Darkness will ascend in about an hour. I hate to wait because of Legolas, but we cannot get caught. If that knife gets taken… Our chances of escape are very slim…"

Elrohir nodded. "An hour then. Let us hope the great Manwë is on our side this night." An hour. Only an hour, and then they could escape if luck was on their side. They would need it. But even then, would they manage to get far enough away from the orcs before they realised they were gone? Legolas would surly slow their pace down. And then there was the fact that both of the twins sported minor injuries as well.

But they would just have to worry about that when the time came. They didn't have anytime to spare to come up with a better plan. This was what they had, and though it may be a bit imprudent, it would work. It had to.

"Don't think much on it, Elrohir. Unless we somehow get a better idea, we have to have the confidence that it will work. Dawning on if it will work or not will not help us."

Elrohir gave a single nod in reply. He just needed to stop overthinking everything. He needed to keep a cool mind about this. For Legolas. For Elladan. For himself.

A look of strong determination suddenly crossed his face. Because in one hour, they would escape. In one hour, they would be out of these woods and back in Rivendell. And why was Elrohir so sure about this?

Because he wasn't sure what he would do if it didn't work."

* * *

 **A/N: Well, there ya go folks. What do you think, will I let them escape? Or will they be trapped for all eternity, WAHAHAHA! Tell me what you think in the comments below!**


	6. Changing Tides

After what seemed like forever, the sun finally set and the only light came from the moon and stars. As of now, Elrohir had high hopes for their plan. The camp that the orcs has set up was a bit larger than they needed, which was lucky for the three elves, because most of the It's were far enough away from them.

"Bah," one of the orcs has sneered right before the sun went down. "I'm not doing anything. 'Keep an eye on them filthy elves,' he said. Yeah right. There's no way they'd be able to escape."

The twins had to hide their excitement when they heard that. They faked unconsciousness, and once they were sure all the orcs were either asleep or not paying attention, they started their plan.

"We'll have to be extra discrete about this. One tiny slip up and we're doomed," Elladan told his brother.

Elrohir nodded before attempting to reach for the knife in his boot. He gritted his teeth as he tried to lean forward and move his arm, but he was tied too tightly to get anywhere. Not even thinking about giving up, he took a different approach to this. His arms and hands may have been bound, but his legs weren't. He started doing this odd looking motion of moving his leg. When the knife didn't fall out, he turned to Elladan. "I can't get it," he said, frowning.

Elladan rolled his eyes. "Move your legs as close to me as you can and I'll see if I can grab it." Elrohir nodded again and did just that. He was flexible enough that it worked, and suddenly, Elladan had hold of the knife. The two elves grinned at each other.

"Brilliant. Now cut us free."

Elladan sawed through the rope slowly, and once he was untied, he did the same for Elrohir, who massaged his wrists. "Ah, it's good to be free again," he whispered.

They both knelt down, fearing that if they immediately stood, they would be spotted. Elladan unbound Legolas, and Elrohir held the unconscious elf in his arms. "What now?" He whispered. "Legolas has two injured arms. How are we supposed to get him through these woods?

Elladan's face fell slightly. "I...I'm not sure." He paused, trying to formulate the rest of the plan in his head. "We May have to wake him."

The concern flashed back onto Elrohir's face. He hated to wake Legolas. It would only cause the elf more pain, and he was most likely too weak to even stand right now. But they couldn't exactly carry him either. He gulped. "Very well."

"Legolas, Legolas, we need you to wake," Elladan said in a gentle tone and he attempted to shake the elfling awake without causing him anymore pain.

Legolas' eyes suddenly opened and he let out a hiss of pain. Elladan quickly clamped a hand over his mouth. "You must be quiet. We know you're in pain, but we have to leave. Can you stand?"

The prince gave a weak nod of his head and managed to stand, though he was wobbly on his feet. Elrohir placed a hand on his back to keep him steady. "Alright, then let's go." The twins each stayed right by Legolas in case he might fall or collapse. It would have been much easier to support him were his arms in good condition. But with some having an arrow wound in the shoulder, and the other broken, they couldn't do that without causing the pain to greatly intensify.

Despite his obvious pain though, Legolas was putting up a great effort to keep on walking. He gritted his teeth (most likely to keep from crying out), but his eyes shined with determination. Elrohir was impressed with the effort, and was also glad for it as they managed to escape from the camp and get out of view. Getting caught was still a likely option though, so each steps they took had to be planned and silent. Even a crunch of a stepped on leaf could wake the orcs and alert them. And if they got caught again… Well, Elrohir didn't even want to think of that.

It was only then did he realize how much Legolas seemed to be struggling. Each step looked like it was a mighty burden. Beads of sweat from the exaltation were clearly seen from his tremendous effort. They hadn't even been walking for that long, but Legolas already looked as though he was about to collapse.

"Legolas, do you need to rest for a moment?" Elrohir offered in a whisper only audible to an elf. He knew they didn't really have a moment to spare, but he also couldn't have Legolas render unconscious again.

"No," Legolas replied stubbornly, though it seemed even that single word took a lot out of him. His shoulder sank, and the young elf gritted his teeth together so hard that Elrohir was sure a tooth would crack.

The twins spared each other a knowing glance. They were both thankful and annoyed with the stubbornness of the prince. Elrohir watched him very carefully as they continued on. The elfling's steps were slow and sloppy. He wasn't walking nearly as quietly as he usually would have. 'Ro began counting his steps.

One step- Another bead of sweat ran down Legolas' forehead.

Second step- A quiet moan of pain.

Third step- A slight stumble, one that would be barely noticeable to the human eye but still there.

Four, fifth, sixth- Legolas grabbed onto Elladan for support with his arrow wounded arm.

Seventh, eight, ninth step- The young prince's eyes had taken a glassy look and he was beginning to look unsteady on his feet. His face was even packed than before.

Tenth step- His eyes rolled back in his head and he started to fall.

Elrohir's eyes widened with alarm as he forgot all about counting steps and reached for his young friend. "Legolas! Stay with us!" He whispered frantically. And then the worst possible thing that could happen right then...It happened.

As Legolas fell, his boots made contact with a twig and a loud snap rang out through the forest. An owl heard the sound and let out a hoot.

"No, no, no!" Elrohir heard his twin stammer. Elladan gripped Legolas by his non wounded shoulder and shook him, not caring to be as gentle this time. "Wake up mellon-nin! We must go! We must make haste!"

Legolas didn't respond. From about a quarter of a mile away, they both heard the shouts and yells of several angry orcs who had most likely just discovered their elven prisoners were missing.

Elrohir and Elladan gave each other equally panicked looks. "We can't make it. We won't be able to make it. Not with Legolas like this. We'll never get away." Elrohir sunk to the ground, beginning to despair. They were so close. And discovered by the smallest noise of all things...Why in Arda was their luck so horrible?!

Elladan stared fiercely at his twin. He held Legolas close to him and looked him in the eyes.

"'Ro, we can't give up now. There's still hope. Help me carry Legolas and we can still evade the orcs. Do you hear me, brother? We can still make it!" His voice was clear and unwavering, though the speaker was very much afraid.

Elrohir have a shaky breath. "R-right. Yes. You're right. There's still a chance."

The sound of heavy footsteps came near them.

"Help me carry Legolas then! Maybe if we hide in the trees until they pass-"

The steps were closer now. And there were many of them.

Elrohir started to grab Legolas, but then paused. He froze for a second. His expression darkened.

"Well?! What are you waiting for?" Elladan hissed. "We must leave now!"

"No." Elrohir's reply was short but sure.

The look Elladan have him was full of a mixture of worry, fear, anger, and annoyance. "What?" His tone was frighteningly quiet.

"We won't be able to make it. Let us not lie to ourselves, Elladan. You know deep inside that we won't all be able to make it."

"...What are you saying? Do you WANT us to be captured again? They'll torture us! And with Legolas in this condition-"

Elrohir took a deep shuddering breath, and gave a quick glance from Legolas to Elladan. "-I'm saying that only one of us will be able to escape tonight. Legolas cannot in this shape, and I would never even think about us leaving him behind. But if one of us goes to tell Father—"

Elladan's eyes widened. "No. No! We must not separate!"

Elrohir glared at his brother. "We have no other options! It is for our best if we are all to survive. If we get help, we have infinitely better chances of survival."

A pause. Then Elrohir spoke again.

"You go. You go escape and tell Father of our misfortune. Get help as fast as you can. Run, run until you come to the gates of Imladris. And do not hesitate to speak until we have help on the way. I will stay here with Legolas. I may not be able to do much if we are kept prisoner again, but I swear to you that I will keep him alive, no matter what. We promised to bring him back from this hunting trip alive, and alive he shall return home to."

Elladan's mouth opened in what looked like he was going to argue, but then he promptly shut it and gave a single nod. "Very well then. May the Valar be in your favor. Help will arrive soon."

And with that, Elladan put Legolas into Elrohir's arms and took off running as fast as his legs would carry him.


	7. Run Elladan, Run!

**A/N: I just want to quickly thank all of you who have reviewed! It always makes me happy to read them and know that people are enjoying my story :) You guys are awesome!! This chapter will be in Elladan's POV, but we'll get back to Legolas and Elrohir next time ;)**

 **Now, without further ado, enjoy some more elf suffering (hehe…)!**

Elladan wasn't sure how long he had been running. All he could think of was the fact that he had just left his twin and young friend all alone and to the mercy of orcs. Ai Elbereth, what was he thinking!?!

He knew Imladris couldn't be too far away. He, Elrohir, and Legolas hadn't strayed too far away. Yet it seemed as though this run back had been going on for eternity. The wound on his leg caused by an orc arrow from earlier was currently sending sharp signals of pain up his leg. He had to grit his teeth together to keep from crying out. It wasn't a very bad wound, not like Legolas', but it still did hurt a lot more than he would have liked. And the gash on his arm hurt too (though not nearly as bad).

 _Stop this,_ he told himself. _Legolas is suffering much more than you. You can handle this._

It was true. He had endured worse before, and besides, his injuries were very minor compared to that of the prince of Mirkwood.

It didn't make it any easier to run though.

Elladan was becoming a little lightheaded now, from all the running. Judging by the way the sky was very faintly lighting up again, it had been at least been an hour or two. How he was still able to run, he wasn't sure. Perhaps it was adrenaline or the fact that his brother and dear friend would surely perish at the hands or orcs if he didn't reach Rivendell soon. And elves did have that very handy strong endurance of theirs. They could last much longer than humans while running. This was certainly pushing limits though.

Elladan was seriously considering to take a short rest right now. He couldn't go much further. He was becoming a little dizzy, and he was breathing dangerously heavy. He stumbled as he ran.

 _No_ , he thought to himself. _I must keep going. For their sakes._

But try as he might, Elladan knew that pushing himself further would only hinder his rescue attempt. If he went too far as to push himself into unconsciousness, he would help no one. He forced himself to come to a stop, and held onto a tree branch for support. He was gasping for air, taking it greedily in. He needed to breath. He needed to calm down and catch his breath so he could continue. Both his arm and leg were protesting going any further, but he ignored them. He could worry about that after Elrohir and Legolas were brought safely back.

Elladan didn't rest for more than five minutes before getting back up and carrying on once more. He hoped desperately that Rivendell was close. His legs had barely any strength left to keep running, and his lungs were killing him. But because of his stubbornness, he was able to press forward nonetheless.

Luckily enough for him, elves were much quicker than humans or any other mortals on foot. They could run great distances in even a short amount of time. So a couple of hours before the sun had even risen, and not too long after he had taken the break, Elladan finally saw the gates of Rivendell come into view. He could see the graceful beauty of it from here. His home, now so close. Help was close. He could get his father and a small group of soldiers prepared, and hopefully before noon came, have Elrohir and Legolas in their grasps. And the orcs...All of them would be slain. Elladan would personally make sure that none of them escaped alive. Not what after they had done to Legolas, and even Elrohir and himself.

And his mother.

So without any hesitation, but slightly hindered by his very low energy levels, Elladan approached the gates of his home. Two surprised guards looked at him, and before they could speak, Elladan took two deep breaths and spoke frantically before staggering to the ground in an unconscious heap.

"H-help."


	8. Time is a Tickin'

Lord Elrond had been in his private study when he got the news. Elladan has returned home, but Elrohir and Legolas were nowhere to be seen. As a father, that struck fear in him. What if something had happened (which was the most likely case)? Why was Elladan alone?

And then there was the fact that Elrond's eldest had collapsed into unconsciousness as soon as he set foot in Rivendell. He would have to wait to get answers from him, and even when he did awake, Elrond wasn't sure how well if a state he would be in.

One of the guards at the front gate was among the first to inform him of Elladan's arrival. The second he got the news, Lord Elrond does to the healing room where his son was waiting, worry and concern etched into his face.

"Elladan!" He called out to the unconscious elf. The others in that room moved aside, knowing Elrond would want to look over his son himself. A heavy sigh escaped his lips. "Ai Elbereth...I never should have let you three go out on your own...Not when danger lurks so near."

He was aware that he couldn't protect his sons from the oncoming darkness of this world, but he tried anyway. More and more orcs were inhabiting Middle Earth, and if they got ahold of the twins like they did their mother… He could never forgive himself.

And then there was Legolas. So young, yet so brave and one of the best warriors Mirkwood had ever seen. With time and age, perhaps the best. He was one of the last elves born into this world, and he grew up having to fight the darkness and evil hidden in Mirkwood. He had to watch his mother die because of that darkness. The elf-king Thranduil trusted Elrond enough to watch over his son, and now, he didn't even know where he was or if he was okay.

Valar, what has he been _thinking_ when he let those three elves out alone?! And for a hunting trip!

Elrond's lips were pressed in a fine line while he examined Elladan. He was paler than usual and looked exhausted. He was injured too—something which made Elrond frown deeply. If he was injured, then there was a good chance Elrohir and Legolas were as well.

His first and best guess was orcs. They had been spotted near Rivendell days before, afterall. And there was an arrow wound in Elladan's leg. Orcs weren't known to be world-class archers.

Why couldn't he have just denied them the request to go on a hunting trip? It would have put a bit of a damper on Legolas' stay, sure, but it would have kept them safe. And safe was how he preferred them.

Elrond cleaned and bandaged the rest of Elladan's wounds (even the very minor ones such as small cuts) and then sat back in a chair near Elladan's bed and let out a weary sigh. Hopefully he would awaken soon. As much as Elrond knew his son could use the rest, he also needed to know what became of Legolas and Elrohir. He could send out a search party now, but it would be unwise until they knew where they were and how big of a threat they faced.

Hopefully he would awaken soon.

* * *

Elrohir tried his best to hide his terror as the orc pack approached them. He clutched Legolas tightly against him and prayed to the Valar that help wouldn't take long to arrive. The orcs would be furious that their prisoners escaped, and if they went unscathed, Elrohir would be entirely shocked.

The leader of the orc pack spoke in their vile and evil-filled speech. Just hearing it made Elrohir shutter. "It's okay Legolas," he whispered softly. "Help is on the way." Elladan would make it. He knew he would.

The unconscious elf shuttered and his eyes fluttered. A soft whimper was heard. Legolas unconsciously grabbed onto Elrohir's arm and held it tightly. "Peace mellon-nin," Elrohir heard himself say. "I will protect you. Everything will be fine." He just hoped it would be true.

"There! The elves!" the awful voice of one orc rang out through the forest.

"Weren't there three of them?" another orc growled.

The leader of the pack stepped forward and smiled cruelly at Elrohir. "No matter. Elves are fast, it would be no use to try to catch it." The orc sneered. "Thought you could escape us, did you? Well now you'll pay for that!" He grabbed Elrohir fiercely by the arm, causing a yelp to sound from the elf, and started dragging him back to their camp. Legolas was forced to the ground, and one of the other orcs came and started dragging him too.

"Stop!" Elrohir cried out. "He's badly injured! You'll only make things worse!" Great Elrohir. Trying to reason with the orcs… He must have been hit in the head _hard_ earlier.

Laughter erupted from several of the orcs. "Look at that, he thinks we care!" the leader bellowed. His neck twisted to look behind him at Elrohir. "We're gonna kill you anyway. Your friend will die soon, but you… You'll last longer. We'll make you watch as we tear him apart bit by bit." The horrible laughter rang out again, and Elrohir was filled with fury. He bit his tongue though, knowing that speaking now would only make things even worse than they already were. And there was no point in that.

Eventually, they made it back to the orcs' camp and Elladan and Legolas were each bound separately and each tied against their own tree. Elrohir glanced over at Legolas, whose head was hanging limply. His eyes fluttered though, and Elrohir was sure he would come to soon.

Elrohir's attention turned to a mace-wielding orc as they glared at each other. "I'm 'ere to make sure you don't escape again." A revolting smile crossed his lips. "Don't worry though. In the morning you'll get what's waiting for ya. We'll make you sorry you ever came into these woods." The cruel laughter of orcs was heard again and Elrohir screwed his eyes shut as he turned his head away. He couldn't take this any longer. He couldn't stand being here.

And he would be lying to himself if what the orc said didn't bother him. _What_ exactly was he going to be subject to the next morning? Whatever it was, he didn't want to find out. But maybe, just maybe, Elladan would be back by then with help.

Maybe.


	9. An Understanding

It had been a few hours now, and Elrond was tending to Elladan's wounds again, when he suddenly heard a soft groan and saw his son's eyes flutter open.

"Legolas!" Elladan exclaimed in a panic as he suddenly sat straight up, ignoring the sharp pain it brought. He turned to Elrond, his eyes wide. "O-orcs, they took us and-"

Elrond kept his expression collected even though fear ran through his heart. Orcs. If they did get taken prisoner by orcs, Elrond needed to know why Elladan escaped or was set free when Legolas and Elrohir obviously weren't. He placed a hand gently on the elder twin's shoulder. "Slow down and breath, Elladan. Start from the beginning."

Elladan didn't look happy about this, most likely thinking about how much time it would waste when they could have instead been looking for the two missing elves. But nevertheless, he complied. He told Elrond everything, from the orcs being spotted, to Legolas falling out of a tree and getting seriously injured, to their mostly failed escape. Elrond was silent during it all, only nodding gravely. Once Elladan finished, an unreadable mask came about the lord of Rivendell's face. For a few seconds there was silence. But then Elrond stood.

"So orcs keep them captive now." His tone was slow but steady and unwavering. Though he sounded collected, Elladan suspected that they shared the same burning sense of malevolence that could never vanquished because of what orcs had done to their family. It was history repeating itself right now, and only the Valar knew what Elrond would do if anything permanently affected either Elrohir or Legolas. When his wife had been tortured by the foul creatures many years ago, she had been too scarred both physically and emotionally, and could no longer find peace or joy on Arda. She would have faded away had she not sailed for Valinor… Elrond nor Elladan would be able to stand seeing someone they loved going through that much pain a second time.

No. He wouldn't even ponder on that terrible thought. He vowed to himself that both of the young elves would be found, and brought back home in one piece.

Elladan was staring sadly at the ground when Elrond glanced back at him. "We'll send out a search party at once. How many orcs did you say there were?"

Elladan frowned, thinking. "We killed several so now… At least eight, no more than fifteen though." He paused for a split second. "I'm going with the search party."

Elrond raised an eyebrow. "Might I remind you that you're injured, Elladan. The journey would not be wise with the so few hours of rest you got. You exhausted yourself running back here to Imladris."

"Adar—you can't expect me to just sit around here patiently and wait!"

Elrond pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed—something he happened to do a lot when his stubborn twin sons were involved. "I understand that you are concerned for their safety, but I will join the party-"

Elladan's eyes narrowed almost dangerously, stubborn as ever. "I-"

"Elladan!" Elrond said exasperatedly. If a fight broke out, which was the most likely thing to happen, Elladan would be weaker in a fight because of the injuries he had sustained. Elves may heal faster than mortals, but it still took longer than a few hours to be back to normal. And if Elladan got hurt any worse…

Suddenly, the eldest of the twins had a sorrowful expression appear on his features. "You don't understand. If I had been paying better attention to our surroundings on our hunt, we wouldn't even be in this mess right now. It's all my fault that Legolas is badly injured and that I left him and Elrohir to the mercy of the orcs and that I couldn't kill all of the orcs and-"

His words came out in a jumbled mess that only a sharp eared elf would be able to make out. He choked on his words and it immediately became evident to Elrond that Elladan needed this. He wouldn't be satisfied until he personally saw all of those orcs dead, most of them at his own doing. Elrond understood that feeling. He didn't have peace again until he slaughtered the orcs that had tortured his wife..

"Very well. You may come." Elrond's answer came to the obvious surprise of Elladan, who's eyes widened slightly. He didn't question it though, and gave a single nod in return. He made to stand up, but Elrond gently pushed him back. "We will leave in an hour. I want you to get as much rest as possible while I prepare the search party. You will need it."

With those words, Elrond left the room and Elladan was stuck wondering how exactly he was supposed to get some rest while the prospect of leaving to rescue Elrohir and Legolas was fresh on his mind. He did feel more at peace than he had in hours though, and knew with an almost complete certainty that no orc would bring anymore injury or pain to Elrohir or Legolas once he was there. This had been the longest two days of his life, and Elladan could hardly wait to see it over with. And he doubted that he would be taking any more hunting trips anytime soon. But that was a matter for another time, once Legolas was healed and he and Elrohir were safely back here.

He laid back in his bed and stared at the ceiling. The sky was starting to darken now. It would be slightly harder to complete their task at the mercy of nightfall, but luckily they had the wonderful gift of sharp Elven eyesight on their side. They could do this.

They had to.


	10. Two Tortured Souls

Legolas had come to just a few minutes after the sun had settled and the sky had started to darken. His incredibly painful headache was back, but this time he was able to more successfully ignore it. His eyes didn't seem to want to open though, so he just kept them closed and tried to remember what situation he was currently in. His concussion seemed to be lessening up, so his thoughts came a little faster and more clearly. After a few minutes, he remembered— they had been trying to escape the orcs. They made it out into the woods...And then what? That must have been when Legolas had passed out, because it was all blank from there.

His eyelids fluttered and opened slightly as he tried to sit up, and then realized he was already standing. And apparently tied against something because he couldn't move his arms.

Ai Elbereth, his arms! The pain came back so suddenly that it caused Legolas to wince and a small sound of pain came out of him. One arm was broken, if he remembered correctly. And the other…

Legolas tried his best to clear his foggy and pain-filled mind as he desperately attempted to remember what was wrong with his other arm.

Oh right. Arrow wound in his shoulder. Stupid concussion.

Well anyway, both of his arms hurt horribly. The fact that they were pressed against the sides of his body with rope certainly didn't help matters.

Because elves were immune to getting sick, the feeling of nausea almost never came to them, so Legolas was taken by surprise when he realized that he felt nauseous (from the concussion, pain, or both, he didn't know). A soft groan escaped his lips as his eyes opened fully.

Oh no. No no no no no. The orc camp. So they had been taken captive again. At least that would explain why he was tied up.

"Legolas?" A quiet voice coming from his right said. Legolas wearily turned his head and saw Elrohir there.

"..'Ro..?" Legolas muttered in reply, squinting his eyes. It annoyed him how his words were slurred together again. He couldn't even fully say Elrohir's name. This was tragic indeed. At the very least, he was glad that his vision wasn't so blurred that he couldn't tell the twins apart from each other. Just another joyful sign that his concussion was clearing up. Thank Arda for quick Elven healing.

"Yes Legolas, me. Elrohir. Are you alright? Are you able to handle the pain?" His voice was filled to the brim with concern, and while Legolas appreciated it, it also annoyed him. He may be injured, but he wasn't helpless. Well… he sort of was right now, but that wasn't the point.

"'M fine. Where's 'Dan?"

Legolas wasn't sure since he didn't trust his eyes right now, but he thought he saw Elrohir tense up. "He ran when we couldn't. To get help. We'll be rescued soon, Legolas."

It took Legolas a couple of seconds to process those words, but then he gave a very subtle nod of his head. "Good." He didn't have the energy to think anymore on it. He didn't ask how they got caught again, though he assumed it was his fault. It couldn't have been easy to try to escape a pack of orcs while supporting an unconscious elf. "Are you injured?" his words were coming more easily now.

Elrohir seemed a little surprised by that question. His eyebrows arched. "Me? I'm fine. It's you we should worry about."

The edges of Legolas' lips turned upward in a slight smile. "Told you...already. Never better."

Elrohir has to fight the urge to roll his eyes. That was a lie, if he'd ever heard one. But the fact that Legolas attempted to hide his pain meant it was a bit less than earlier. It was bearable. That at least, was good. "Of course you are."

Legolas opened his mouth, and was about to reply, when a rather large orc came up to Elrohir with a particularly wicked smile on their face. They hastily untied him and then tugged Elrohir by his long hair and pulled him over to where the other orcs were. "What's going on? Stop!" Elrohir said almost frantically, a look of alarm on his face. He was pushed to the ground.

"We're gonna have some fun with you. Make you hurt real bad before we leave you to die. It'll teach you not to escape us," one orc sneered.

Legolas watched this scene from the tree where he was tied up. He didn't like the looks of this. Most of the orcs has their weapons in hand, including swords, knives, maces and scimitars. He already knew what they were going to do before they even started. Legolas bit his tongue in order to keep from yelling anything at the orcs he might regret. He wasn't as familiar with the creatures as Elladan and Elrohir were, but he knew that their weapons were usually coated with a blood thinning poison that killed their prey faster. If it was inflicted upon Elrohir… Well, Legolas just hoped that Elladan would return with help soon.

Elrohir tried resisting as best he could, but the air in his lungs was quickly dispelled as he got struck in the chest with a mace. Legolas winced as he could tell his dear friend was having trouble collecting his breath, and didn't doubt that he now had some broken or at least bruised ribs. That had to hurt.

He couldn't watch any further. He hated seeing anyone in pain or being tortured, whether it was an injured deer to even a human. And this happening to someone he cared about was something he definitely couldn't take any more of.

His eyes squeezed shut after hearing the first scream.


	11. Worry not, help is on its way

**A/N: Hey guys, it's been so much fun writing this! I'm afraid that this story is nearly over though. But don't worry, I'll definitely be writing more Legolas fics, so keep an eye out! Would you prefer more 'younger Legolas' type of stories or ones with him and Aragorn? Or something else entirely? Let me know in the comments! Now enjoy the second to last chapter of this you'll read :)**

* * *

When Elrond went to the healing room to rouse Elladan for their journey, he was a little surprised and not all too pleased to see that he was sitting on the edge of his bed, apparently wide awake. "Did you get any rest?" he asked his son.

Instead of trying to persuade his father that he did indeed get some rest, he shook his head, a grim expression on his face. "No. And I'm not sure why you expected me to get any rest. Not with Elrohir and LEgolas somewhere out in the vast forest as the prisoners of orcs."

Elrond sighed and walked over. "I can't say that I blame you. Were I to try to get any rest, I'm not sure that I could either." There was a few seconds of utter silence, the unspoken worries and fears caught between them. "Are you ready to leave? The rest of the search party is waiting by the stables."

Elladan nodded and stood. "I'll need another sword though. Mine was left with the orcs when they imprisoned us."

"Alright. Let us make haste then. The less time we waste, the better."

The both of them now in agreement, they stopped by their armory and picked out a new blade for Elladan. Elrond himself was already armed with his sword, and carried a wide variety of healing supplies with him, in case either Elrohir, Legolas, or the both of them needed immediate medical attention. Once they were both prepared, they left. There were perhaps ten other elves joining them, and each climbed upon the back of a swift elven horse. And just like that, they set off.

* * *

If Legolas hadn't been very much aware earlier, he definitely was now. And that wasn't by choice. The orcs hadn't injured Elrohir too seriously, but their methods were cruel ones. They obviously had years of experience of giving people the most painful torture whilst keeping them alive and at least mostly conscious. Legolas hadn't been able to bear watching it.

Elrohir had only screamed once, but then he stayed silent. Legolas knew how stubborn the sons of Elrond could be, and didn't doubt that Elrohir refused to give the orcs the pleasure of hearing him scream a second time. The firstborn couldn't be broken that easily.

"Stop!" Legolas had called out at one point to the orcs. The words did nothing though. Nothing at all. It had been a waste of breath.

As of now, Elrohir was tied against his tree again, his eyes shut, his expression filled with pain, and his face white as a sheet. despite that, he appeared to still be conscious. What really scared Legolas though, was the slow, raspy breaths that Elrohir was taking in. There was almost no doubt that his ribs were broken, but how badly Legolas couldn't say. The thought that Elrohir's ribs might have pierced a lung was currently stressing him out like crazy. He couldn't do anything to help. And even if they were unbound, Legolas wasn't trained to be a healer, unlike Elrohir. He only knew the most basic healing methods. Later, when he was old enough to join the Mirkwood patrol, he would learn a few more crucial things. But now… Nothing. Nothing that could help. And it greatly uneased Legolas. They were both injured badly now. And if Elladan didn't come back with help soon, their chances of survival could be slim to none.

* * *

"Any sign of them?" Elrond asked the elf who had just scouted ahead.

"None yet, my lord," came the elf's reply. "But I sense we are getting close. There is a disturbance in the wind."

Elrond nodded firmly, and prayed he was right. When they did get close enough, the orcs most likely wouldn't be hard to find.

"Aye, if my memory serves right, then our journey to them shouldn't last much longer," Elladan commented. And hopefully his memory did serve to be right. It felt as though he had been running for hours and hours earlier, but it couldn't have taken him _that_ long. "Let us carry on."

* * *

A couple of hours had passed now, and the sunrise was blinding in the distance. It did, at least, bring a nice sense of beauty in this dire situation. Legolas' head had begun pounding badly again. He had felt tired for a while now, and he knew with an almost surety that if Elrohir was awake or Elladan were still here, they would insist on him getting some rest to help his concussion go away. With his elven healing doing its part, it was already getting better, but that didn't change the fact that it had only been a day or so and that it hadn't been a minor one. Despite that, Legolas couldn't find himself to go to sleep. Whether that was another symptom of his concussion or just because of his worry for Elrohir, he didn't know.

Speaking of Elrohir, his state hadn't changed much. He was fully unconscious now, and it unnerved Legolas to see the other elf with his eyes closed like that. Elves slept with their eyes open, unless extremely exhausted or injured. And that fact did absolutely nothing to ease Legolas' worry.

His head hurt too much to keep on worrying. The young Legolas attempted to close his eyes to see if that would help, and while it did slightly, there was still no drastic change. Right now, more than anything, he just wanted to be back at home in Mirkwood or the nice comforting peace of Imladris. There he could rest and could ease his weary head. This had indeed been the longest two days he had ever known in his long life so far.

By now, Legolas was starting to have some doubts that help would ever arrive. What if something had happened to Elladan and he never made it back to Rivendell? Or what if he had gotten help but forgot the way? What if-

No… Legolas knew he was being dramatic. He wasn't usually an impatient elf, but he was tired of waiting without even knowing when or if help would arrive. If Elrohir would be okay. If he would be okay. His head pain had distracted him from his other wounds for a few minutes now, but his broken arm felt excruciatingly painful. His shoulder wound wasn't as bad now at least, so that was something.

There was something else too… Something Legolas would never admit out loud to anybody. He was scared. Scared of the possibility that this could go very wrong. Scared of the cruel and merciless orcs. Scared of the pain and danger they were in. Most of it was new to him, being as young as he was in the eyes of an elf. At least the twins had been in situations similar to this before. It wasn't entirely new to them like it was to him. And that scared him. It frightened him. He didn't know what to do. He wasn't sure what else to feel.

"Will help ever arrive?" he muttered to himself in a voice too soft and quiet for anyone to hear. He almost didn't hear the gentle patter of horse hooves nearby or the soft whisper of several elven voices that only another elf could hear.


	12. Peace Again

**A/N: Well folks, this is it! The last chapter! Enjoy, and thanks so much for reading! It would mean a lot if you could leave a review!**

* * *

Elladan usually loved the sound of birds chirping in the mornings, but now it just frustrated him. It was the only sound that they'd heard for the whole duration of their journey, and all he wanted was a sign of the orcs, Elrohir, and Legolas.

"We're getting nowhere," Elladan gloomily pointed out. "I have led us astray. Otherwise, we would have come across them by now."

"Patience, Elladan," Lord Elrond said sternly yet gently. "I have a feeling we are nearly there. I know that it is difficult, but we must wait."

Elladan sighed, knowing his father was right. They just had to wait.

But perhaps half an hour later, it finally happened— they heard the orcs.

Once they got close enough, the twelve elves in the party surrounded the orcs and waited for Elrond's signal. Elladan saw his eyes narrow when they caught sight of Legolas and Elrohir. Legolas was awake and looked a little better than when Elladan has last seen him. A bit more color had come to his face, and he looked more aware. He did look very weary though, and slightly ill. But at least he was conscious now.

Elrohir on the other hand… Elladan has frozen up when he saw him tied to a tree near Legolas. His head was hanging and his body shuttered with every breath. A pained look was on his face, much like the one Legolas wore earlier.

Elladan glowered at the orcs through the trees. No one messes with his twin. No one. The orcs would pay very dearly for this. He couldn't wait to get his hands on them. His fists clenched tightly as Elrond finally gave the signal and the elves attacked, effortlessly weaving their way through the trees of the forest and into the orcs' camp.

Elladan himself didn't hesitate a single second before gripping the hilt of his long sword and driving it into the heart of the nearest orc. It fell down before any cry of warning could be given to the other beasts. The other elves attacked as well, and Elladan watched as orc after orc fell to the ground.

"More of the blasted elves!" an orc yelled, causing others to draw their weapons and now aware, attack back. "Kill then all! We already have our prisoners."

Elladan was thankful for all of his practice against fighting orcs, because it was easy now that they were fighting back. But this time, it wasn't just him, Elrohir and Legolas. He had eleven other elves watching his back, and one of them was his father.

"Elladan!" Elrond shouted over the loud sounds of sword against sword. "Go free Legolas and Elrohir! The orcs are nearly all dead."

Elladan nodded in reply and ran over to the two captives, cutting through any orc that happened to be in his way. Once he reached them, he unsheathed his dagger and used it to cut Legolas free first, since he was already conscious.

"Ell..adan?" Legolas asked, his words still slow but clearer now. He squinted his eyes as if making sure it really was him and not some delusion.

"Aye, it's me Legolas. We've come at last. I apologize for taking so long. Are you alright?"

Legolas smiled. "Do not apologize. You came as fast as you could. And I am well."

Elladan raised an eyebrow that last statement. Legolas cleared his throat. "Er...Better than earlier, that is." He leaned forward as he was cut free, and nearly fell faceforward. Luckily, Elladan caught him just in time and steadied him.

"Here, sit by this tree until I free Elrohir. And warn me if any danger comes near you."

Legolas hummed in reply and allowed Elladan to help him into a sitting position, and watched as he went to go unbound Elrohir now.

"'Ro? 'Ro, can you hear me?" Elladan asked his twin in a voice filled with concern. The only reply he got from the elf, was a groan. Elrohir's head turned, but he didn't lift it or open his eyes. Sighing, Elladan cut the touch rope with his dagger and held Elrohir in his arms as he looked to see how the small battle was going. There was only one orc left, and it was headed towards Legolas. Elladan gripped his sword again and stepped in front of Legolas, defending him. He had no need though, because right after, Elrond crept behind the filthy orc and did the honors of killing it. Its head fell to the ground and rolled a few feet away. Elladan looked at it in disgust then turned to his father, the worry in his eyes very clear.

The other elves were approaching now, and without Elrond even saying anything, they brought his healing supplies over. Elladan laid his twin brother carefully on the ground, and then sat next to Legolas (who looked ready to collapse a second time), wrapping one arm around him while Elrond checked over Elrohir. "Will he be alright _Adar_?" he asked, frowning at the way Elrohir was breathing. His first guess would be broken ribs, and if he was correct, he just hoped the break wasn't too bad and didn't pierce any vital organs.

" _Sídh_. Peace my son. I expect that his injury is very painful, but it is not life threatening. He will be fine," Elrond said. He bound Elrohir's ribs and turned to Legolas. He frowned with disapproval at his broken arm. It wasn't set, so he fixed that. Legolas breathed in harshly when he did so, and Elladan had to hold on to him to make sure he didn't pass out from the sudden outburst of pain. But after that was done, they were finally able to make their way back home to Rivendell.

* * *

Legolas had just barely awaken, and was now standing aside a window, peering out into the beautiful gardens. It had been a week since the hunting trip-gone-wrong, and he was more glad than ever to be in this beautiful haven of Lord Elrond's. Fore the past few days he had been sentenced to stay in bed and rest, but his concussion had gone away almost fully now and his broken arm was nearly healed. Elrohir was also in a much better condition now, though his ribs still caused him the occasional pain. He had obtained several other injuries, but none of them had been as major. Today just felt like a good day for him. The breeze was light, the birds sang their chiper songs, and the grass was so very green. After being captured by orcs, he was very much glad to be here in the midst of peace, rather than the forests of Mirkwood where danger was always present. He needed this peace.

And he knew Elladan and Elrohir needed it too. They hadn't stopped apologising to Legolas yet, no matter how many times he told him it wasn't their fault. If anything, it was a good experience to prepare him for the dangers of Mirkwood in the future when he joined the patrol. Giant spiders, rabid humans, orcs… There would be many things to look out for. Experiences were what defined a warrior. Whether they let those experiences harm them or help them was up to the individual. And this time, Legolas chose to let it help him. Now that didn't mean that the stress and fear he had felt was entirely gone, but it was getting there. It might take awhile before he could go hunting again without being paranoid, but that was fine. He and the twins were alright now, and that was all that mattered.

Next time though, Legolas knew they would heed any warnings Elrond had to offer.

* * *

 **The End**


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